Decorative single-use wreath

ABSTRACT

A single-use wreath foundation for use in constructing a single use wreath is constructed of a primary frame member having a lower section, a secondary frame member attached to the lower section, a foam covering over at least a part of the primary frame member, and a plant material holder supported by the secondary frame member. The secondary frame member may be in the shape of a wire basket, or the secondary frame member may be in the shape of a loop that is substantially perpendicular to the primary frame member, with the primary frame member including a downwardly extending lower section, with the holder being supported by the horizontal loop and lower section. The holder may be a container or a block of foam. The secondary frame member may also be at least partially covered with a foam covering.

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/545,025 filed Feb. 17, 2004, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by this reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(1) Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a decorative wreath of the type used atfunerals and other occasions requiring only a single-use wreath, and inparticular to a wreath that can be economically produced while offeringflexibility in the manner in which the wreath is decorated. Theinvention is also directed to a foundation for such wreathes.

(2) Description of the Prior Art

Reusable wreathes are often used to decorate the home or other locationin celebration of various holiday seasons, such as Christmas orHalloween. Wreathes are also used to commemorate solemn occasions, suchas a death in the family. While wreathes for the former type are oftenreused from season to season, wreathes of the latter type are normallyused only once. The present invention relates to wreathes of this lattertype, referred to herein as disposable or single-use wreathes.

Single-use wreathes of the type contemplated by the present inventionare not limited in use to funerals, but find uses in a variety ofcircumstances where it would be uneconomical to use a reusable wreathhaving a more durable construction. The supports of single-use wreathesmay be decorated by professional florists or others engaged in thebusiness of supplying wreathes, or may be decorated by an individual asa craft item. The kinds of materials that may be used in decoratingsingle-use wreathes is not limited to floral materials, and may includeother artificial and natural plant materials, and decorative items.

Generally, single-use wreathes are comprised of a base to which naturalor artificial plant material, or a combination thereof, can be attached.The base, which is usually formed of rigid plastic foam, e.g.,Styrofoam, may be in various shapes, most commonly a ring shape. Aninternal wire frame is encased within the foam to provide support andstrength. In the case of a foam ring, for example, the frame may becomprised of one or more wire rings sized to extend along the axis ofthe foam ring. The frame may include a hanger, generally in the form ofa hook or loop, at the upper end of the frame for use in attaching thewreath to an easel, wall, etc.

The ways in which single-use wreathes may be decorated are limited.Generally, the type of decoration is limited to the skill of the wreathbuilder in positioning various types of artificial and/or natural plantmaterial around the foam ring. There is a need for greater scope insingle-use wreath decoration, and in particular a need for a means ofincorporating live plant material with a source of water into the wreathconstruction.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a single-use wreath that includes acontainer or holder to hold natural plant material, alone or incombination with artificial plant material, while still being economicalin its manufacture.

Generally, the preferred single-use wreath of the present invention iscomprised of a wire frame, a foam covering over a part of the frame, anda plant holder supported by the frame, the combination of thesecomponents being referred to herein as the single-use wreath foundation.The wreath foundation after the foam is decorated with natural and/orartificial plant material is referred to herein as a single-use wreath.

More specifically, the single-use wreath frame is comprised of a primaryframe member having a lower section, a secondary frame member mountedonto the lower section of the primary frame member, a first foamcovering over at least a part of the primary frame member, and a plantmaterial holder supported by at least the secondary frame member, andpreferably by both frame members.

The primary frame member may be in the form of a wire loop having adownwardly extending lower section that serves to support the holder.The loop may be formed of a single wire or multiple strands. In mostinstances the loops will be circular. However, it is to be understoodthat the loops may be rectangular, oval, triangular, or of anothershape.

The primary frame member is at least partially covered with a foammaterial for use in attaching plant material, e.g., by pins that areinserted into the foam to secure the plant material to the foam. Forexample, all of the primary frame member may be covered with foam exceptfor the lower section that receives the holder. The foam may beStyrofoam or hydrophilic foams marketed under the trademarks “Oasis” and“Aqua Foam.” The foam may, for example, be in the shape of a loop orring with a circular cross-section.

The frame may be comprised of a primary frame member in the form of aloop that is substantially vertical when the wreath is positioned fordisplay and a secondary frame member attached adjacent the lower part ofthe primary frame member so that the secondary frame member issubstantially perpendicular to the primary frame member, i.e.,horizontal when the primary member is vertical. This secondary framemember may be in the form of a loop having a configuration correspondingto the outer dimensions of the holder side walls.

The holder forming a part of the single-use wreath foundation may beformed of a variety of materials and configured in different ways, solong as the holder is capable of supporting plant material. The plantmaterial holder is preferably comprised of a continuous side wall and abottom wall that together define a plant material receiving chamber withan open top. The chamber may be watertight so that water can be providedfor natural plant material or may include a foam block of the typecommonly used by florists to facilitate positioning of the naturaland/or artificial plant material, e.g., a hydrophilic foam block. Theholder is preferably supported adjacent the bottom of the frame by boththe lower section of the primary frame member and by the secondary framemember.

Preferably, the holder is in the form of a vase or container having arear wall, a front wall, side walls joining the rear and front walls,and a bottom wall. The rear wall is desirably of a greater height thanthe front wall, so that the open top of the holder tilts toward thefront of the wreath, providing a larger surface area and greatervisibility of plant material in the holder. The holder may also includea perforated removeable cover that fits over the open top, with theplant material being inserted through openings in the cover into theholder chamber. Preferably, the cover includes a plurality of firstopenings of one dimension and a plurality of opening of a second,smaller dimension to facilitate insertion of material of different stemsizes.

With this construction, when the preferred holder is inserted into thepreferred frame, intended herein to refer to the combination of theprimary and secondary frame members, the holder rear wall engages theback of the secondary frame member, the holder front wall engages thefront of the secondary frame member, and the holder bottom wall issupported on the lower section of the primary frame member. The holderbottom wall may include a slot on its lower surface into which the lowersection of the primary frame member is inserted to secure the holder inplace.

Alternative wreath form constructions are contemplated by the presentinvention. For example, the frame may support a block of foam without anexterior container or vase. Also, the part of the frame support thatholds the vase or foam block may be of different constructions, e.g., abasket-type frame, to support vases or blocks that contain a largeamount of water. When using a foam block, the block and wreath ring canboth be formed of Styrofoam, a hydrophilic foam, or another type offoam, or the block and ring can be formed of different types of foam.Also, instead of forming the plant holder section separately from thering portion of the wreath, the two sections can be formed integrally.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the wreath of the present invention witha part of the floral material removed for illustration purposes, and theplant holder mounted on the frame.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the wreath of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a preferred frame construction.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another frame construction.

FIG. 5 is an alternative embodiment with a block of foam held in a wirebasket.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the wreath basket of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a front view of the embodiment of FIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the invention inwhich the plant holder is integral with the wreath ring.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As illustrated in the drawings, the preferred wreath support of theinvention is comprised of a frame, generally 10, into which is mounted aplant holder, generally 12. Frame 10 is encased in rigid foam 14. Frame10 includes a generally vertical section 16 that projects downwardly atits lower end, and a generally horizontal frame section having a frontsection 18 and a rear section 20. When mounted within the framesections, holder 12 has a front side against front section 18 and a rearside against rear section 20.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, frame 10 may be comprised of a pair of wireloops 30 and 32, with the lower end of loop 30 being turned rearwardlyand horizontally to form rear section 20 and the lower end of loop 32being turned forwardly and horizontally to form front section 18. Thebottom frame element 34 is joined to loops 30 and 32 by end rings 36. Asbest shown in FIG. 3, bottom frame element 34 fits within a groove 38 inthe bottom wall of holder 12.

FIG. 4 shows an alternative frame 40 that extends downwardly beneath thediameter of the circular frame, to form bottom frame element 42. A pairof looped sections 44 and 46 in frame 40 hold horizontal frame member48. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art from these twoexamples that there are various ways of forming and joining the framecomponents to create a frame area for receiving and securing holder 12in place.

FIGS. 5-7 illustrate an alternative embodiment of the invention in whichwreath support, generally 50, includes a basket-type frame 52 to supporta block of foam 54 instead of a vase. It will be understood, however,that basket-type frame 52 can also be used to hold a vase of the typeillustrated and described in the preferred embodiment. For example, whenusing vases that contain a large amount of water, the basket-type framecan provide additional support, preventing distortion of the wreathsupport. Foam block 54 and wreath ring 56 can be of the same ordifferent material. For example, both the ring and block can be ofStyrofoam or a hydrophilic foam, or the ring or block can be ofStyrofoam, while the other part is of a hydrophilic foam. Generally, itis desirable to construct the part of the wreath to which live plantmaterial is attached from hydrophilic foam.

FIG. 8 illustrates another embodiment of the invention in which wreathsupport, generally 60, is formed with an integral ring 62 and plantholder 64. Frame 66 is encased within ring 62 and holder 64.

While the wreath supports of the foregoing examples are shown with theholder at the bottom of the wreath supports, it will be understood thatthe wreath supports may be oriented in different ways, depending on themanner in which the wreath is decorated. Also, the wreath form caninclude more than one holder, with the holders being positioned atdifferent locations around the ring.

Certain modifications and improvements will occur to those skilled inthe art upon a reading of the foregoing description. It should beunderstood that all such modifications and improvements have beendeleted herein for the sake of conciseness and readability but areproperly within the scope of the following claims.

1. A single-use wreath foundation comprising: a) a primary frame memberhaving a lower section; b) a secondary frame member mounted onto thelower section of said primary frame member; c) a first foam coveringover at least a part of said primary frame member; and d) a plantmaterial holder supported by at least one of said frame members.
 2. Thefoundation of claim 1, wherein primary frame member is circular.
 3. Thefoundation of claim 1, wherein said foam covering has a circularcross-section.
 4. The foundation of claim 1, wherein said holderincludes a plant material receiving chamber with an open top.
 5. Thefoundation of claim 1, wherein said primary frame member is a wire loop.6. The foundation of claim 1, wherein said secondary frame member issubstantially perpendicular to said primary frame member.
 7. Thefoundation of claim 1, wherein said holder has a rear wall, a frontwall, side walls joining the rear and front walls and a bottom wall. 8.The foundation of claim 1, further including a second foam covering overat least a part of said secondary frame member.
 9. The foundation ofclaim 1, further including plant material covering at least a part ofsaid foam, and plant material supported by said holder.
 10. A single-usewreath foundation comprising: a) a primary frame member having a lowersection; b) a wire basket mounted on said primary frame member lowersection; c) a first foam covering over at least a part of said primaryframe member; and d) a plant material holder supported by said basket.11. The foundation of claim 10, wherein said basket is at leastpartially covered with a second foam covering.
 12. The foundation ofclaim 10, wherein said holder is a block of foam.
 13. The foundation ofclaim 10, wherein said primary frame member is a wire loop having adownwardly extending lower section.
 14. The foundation of claim 10,wherein said wire basket includes a loop substantially perpendicular tosaid primary frame member.
 15. The foundation of claim 11, wherein firstfoam covering and said second foam covering are integrally formed.
 16. Asingle-use wreath foundation comprising: a) a primary frame memberhaving a downwardly extending lower section; b) a secondary frame memberattached to said lower section, said secondary frame member beingsubstantially perpendicular to said lower section; c) a first foamcovering over at least a part of said primary frame member; and d) aplant material holder supported by said primary and secondary framemembers.
 17. The foundation of claim 16, wherein said holder issupported on said lower section and within said secondary frame member.18. The foundation of claim 17, wherein said secondary frame member isan open rectangle and said holder includes front, back and side wallsabutting said secondary frame member, and a bottom wall supported onsaid lower section.
 19. The foundation of claim 16, wherein saidsecondary frame member is at least partially covered with a second foamcovering.
 20. The foundation of claim 16, further including plantmaterial covering at least a part of said first foam covering and plantmaterial supported by said holder.